One of the biggest things that help any GM is playing. No matter how much fun it may be to cause the surprises, plot twists, and "wtf?" moments, nothing beats being a part of those moments.

Don't get me wrong, I LOVE to GM games, but every once in a while, it's nice to not have to do the planning, not have to figure out "why." Being a part of the action, and being surprised by the twists and turns is great!

Asking questions, solving problems, overcoming obstacles...being in games make us better at running them. It's like Yin and Yang...you gotta have both to be in balance. ^_^

Yeah. That's what I think has happened to me. It's fun to know the plot, but it is even more fun in not knowing it. I've been GMing so much, and playing very little, that I think I'm gonna have to turn it around.

Thanks Pherret.

_________________Roleplay does not begin with everyone else.
Roleplay begins with you.

I've been on the Player side of the fence much more than I have the GM side, so I haven't really experienced GM burnout yet. What I have experienced is complete and utter panic. *laughs*

But as I've gotten older, I've gotten much better at GMing. One of my favorite moments was when my brother (controlling a rather unusual party of D&D adventurers) came across a statue holding, curiously, a wooden staff.

First the party's half-orc tried to remove it and failed. Then the dwarf...then the halfling (a warrior halfling!). Then they all did it together...and failed.

Then the elven priest tried, by herself, and rolled a natural 20. Ah, good times. It's one of those moments that manages to surprise not just the Players, but the GM, too.

Back on topic, I think trading places is in general a good idea. If nothing else, it's a good excuse to take a break from a current campaign and let someone try a wild one shot.

With 20+ years as a GM, I have had more than my share of GM burnout, but I have to say that I do not leave the duty for long.

My secret? I am a sucky player. I have known players who should never crawl behind the screen and I am convinced that I am a player who should not long crawl out from it.

As a player, I tend to be very overbearing (used to having to be "everyone else" in a game, I am used to talking a lot) and I tend to think metagamingly about what the GM is doing while trying to play. In the end, it does help me focus on the craft of GMing by seeing it from the player seat every so often.

One of the chief things that cause any sort of burnout is repetition. If you are getting burned-out by just doing the same game over and over, have a one or two shot where everyone in the group tries to shake things up.

The guy who always plays the thinker or mage has to play a butt-kicker or tough cop, the player who seems to be the ninja/thief all the time takes up the wand or scroll, The mecha pilot...hell, nothing wrong with that guy (kidding!)

Then the GM runs a game that is about something he or she usually doesn't run a game about. If you usually run dungeon crawls or fights, run a espionage or courtly intrigue scenario. If you usually run shojo high-school romps, run a military op in a grim sci-fi setting.

The vital way to stop burnout of any sort is to avoid the usual and to get out of whatever rut you are in. Some of this takes some objective review of your last few sessions to see what it is, if you can (introspection about burnout is particularly hard), that you are getting burned-out over. Maybe it is the player interactions, maybe it is plot-lines, maybe its the genre you run for.

Burnout hankers for unexplored territory and new techniques. That is why switching sides of the screen does a great deal to assuage it for a time. Just make sure to use that time on the player side to aid in figuring out what you want to refine or change about the GM side. The game should be fun for you as well, after all.

You just feel like you want to step down and play rather than host? I think I am getting like that recently in my time at RPoL. I've hosted several Savage Worlds games, and I think I am burnt out.

*sigh*

Just a small rant I suppose. Just need to get back into gaming I guess. Maybe I can find a Play by post game for OVA somewhere. Anime always makes me feel better.

I honestly felt that every week. I got into playing some live games on roll20.net and it cured that feeling. Now I want to run more games. Burnout is natural if you mostly gm. You really need that player time at some point.

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